Notes

Abstract:

On November 18, 2012, I conducted a graduate recital in the University
Auditorium. This graduate recital was in fulfilment of requirements for the Master of Music in Choral Conducting. The program was comprised of eight choral compositions. Among these compositions were: Lux Aurumque; Crucifixus; O Sacrum Convivium; Recordando a Venezuela; uié Rendera, Chôro No.3 Pica-Pau, Battle of Jericho; and the third movement of the Gloria. These choral compositions come from varied genres and cultures across time and space. Baroque/Classical Italy, 20th Century France, Folk music of modern day Venezuela, 20th Century Art and Folk
Music from Brazil, and modern pieces from the United Kingdom, and the United States. Within the repertoire were selections in the English, Latin, Spanish and Portuguese languages. Six of the pieces were a cappella, with the remainder having varied accompaniment such as accordion, horns, alto saxophone, clarinet, bassoon, trombones, tuba, trumpets, timpani and percussion. The vocal performers were student members of the University of Florida Concert Choir, members of the UF Women’s Chorale and the Chamber Singers from the School of Music.

General Note:

Choral Conducting terminal project

Record Information

Source Institution:

University of Florida Institutional Repository

Holding Location:

University of Florida

Rights Management:

All rights reserved by the source institution and holding location.

System ID:

AA00017796:00001

This item is only available as the following downloads:

1 GRADUATE CONDUCTING RECITAL By YULENE VELSQUEZ ITURRATE SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE: WILL KESLING, CHAIR RUSSELL ROBINSON, MEMBER A PROJECT IN LIEU OF THESIS PRESENTED TO THE COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTI AL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF MUSIC UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2012

PAGE 2

2 To my husband and my family, for their unconditional love and support

PAGE 3

3 AKNOWLEDGEMENTS I want to thank the U niversity of Florida Concert Choir for working very diligently on my recital and filling me with enthusiasm. Many thanks to my advisor Dr. Will Kesling for sharing his experience and knowledge with me.

PAGE 4

4 TABLE OF CON TENTS B IOGRAPH I

PAGE 5

5 Summary of Performance Option in Lieu of Thesis Presented to the College of Fine Arts of the University of Florida In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Maste r of Music GRADUATE CONDUCTING RECITAL By Yulene Velsquez November 2012 Chair: Will Kelsing Member: Russell Robinson On November 18, 2012, I conducted a graduate recital in the University Auditorium. This graduate recital was in fulfilment of requir ements for the Master of Music in Choral Conducting. The program was comprised of eight choral compositions. Among these compositions were: Lux Aurumque ; Crucifixus ; O Sacrum Convivium ; Recordando a Venezuela ; Mui Rendera Ch ro No.3 Pica Pau Battle of J ericho ; and the third movement of the Gloria These choral compositions come from varied genres and cultures across time and space. Baroque/Classical Italy, 20 th Century France, Folk music of modern day Venezuela, 20 th Century Art and Folk Music from Brazi l, and modern pieces from the United Kingdom, and the United States. Within the repertoire were selections in the English, Latin, Spanish and Portuguese languages. Six of the pieces were a cappella, with the remainder having varied accompaniment such as ac cordion, horns, alto saxophone, clarinet, bassoon, trombones, tuba, trumpets, timpani and percussion. The vocal performers were student members of the University of Florida Concert Choir, members of the UF chool of Music.

PAGE 6

6 INTRODUCTION On November 18, 2012, I conducted a graduate recital in the University Auditorium. This graduate recital was in fulfilment of requirements for the Master of Music in Choral Conducting. The program was comprised of eight choral compositions. Among these compositions were: Lux Aurumque ; Crucifixus ; O Sacrum Convivium ; Recordando a Venezuela ; Mui Rendera Ch ro No.3 Pica Pau Battle of Jericho ; and the third movement of the Gloria These choral compositions come from varie d genres and cultures across time and space. Baroque/Classical Italy, 20 th Century France, Folk music of modern day Venezuela, 20 th Century Art and Folk Music from Brazil, and modern pieces from the United Kingdom, and the United States. I decided to perfo rm these selections for their variety, their multicultural character and the challenge they represented for the ensemble. To begin the program, I chose the choral work Lux Aurumque by Eric Whitacre for its simplicity and beauty, which helped to set the atm osphere for the rest of the concert. The program then moved to Crucifixus an eight part motet by Antonio Lotti. I have known this piece for a long time from my choral experience with the Schola Cantorum de Venezuela. Its intensity and criss crossed lines provide a vivid feeling of what could be the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The next piece was O Sacrum Convivium by Oliver Messiaen. As my inclination is for more contemporary harmonies, this piece represented a challenge for the choir and for myself. Altho ugh the entire piece is homophonic, its long phrases necessitate that the interpretation maintains a constant illation and sense of connectedness much more evident than in a highly contrapuntal piece. Recordando a Venezuela was composed by the father of on e of the first music teachers I had during my childhood. As the song represents an important part of my life, I decided to arrange it for the choir and highlight the Venezuelan waltz, as well as its distinctive polyrhythms. The following piece performed wa s a Brazilian tune arranged by Pinto Fonseca, Mui Rendera As I semester, it seemed logical to invite members of the choir to perform it on my

PAGE 7

7 recital. This fit perfectly with the next part of the program. Ch ro No.3 Pica Pau was a suggestion Dr. Dos Santos made to me after a Jacar Brazil performance and I decided to take the challenge. I find Villa attracted to the sonority of male voices. T his was a perfect opportunity to work with them. The following piece was Battle of Jericho arranged by Moses Hogan. This was a natural decision due to the previous project the Chamber Singers were working on, a set of spirituals performed in Buga, Colombia during an international festival in October 2012. This piece exalts the roots of African American music. The last piece was the third movement of the Gloria by John Rutter. I knew I wanted to do this piece for my graduate recital ever since I worked with it in one of my conducting classes in 2010. Its shifting meters, majestic sound and overall positive energy led me to place it at the close of the concert. The repertoire I chose covers different styles, tempi, and harmonic structures. Two of the pieces pe rformed included instrumentation, which is the next area I intend to explore in my conducting career.

9 PROGRAM NOTES Lux Aurumque Eric Whitacre is one of the most performed composers of his generation. He studied composition at the University of Nevada and the Juilliard School with notable composers including John Cori gliano and David Diamond. His choral works and band works have rapidly become accepted in the repertoire due to their strong appeal to audiences and players alike. Lux Aurumque was commissioned in 2000 by the M aster Chorale of Tampa Bay The text was taken from a poem by Edward Esch and translated into the Latin by the celebrated American poet Charles Anthony Silvestri. The piece has been also arranged for wind symphony, string orchestra and male choir. This ve rsion features SATB. Lux, Calida gravisque pura velut aurum Et canunt angeli molliter Modo natum. Light, Warm and heavy as pure gold And the angels sing softly To the new born baby. Crucifixus (eight part setting) Antonio Lotti was p robably born in Venice, and lived and worked there for widely admired for his church music. He composed three settings of the Crucifixus in six, eight and ten parts. The most frequently performed is this eight part setting, which originally formed part of a larger work, Credo in F for choir and orchestra that Lotti wrote around 1718 whilst at the court of Dresden. Its cumulative dissonances and dramatic intensity are exce ptionally powerful. Crucifixus etiam pro nobis, sub Pontio Pilato, passus et sepultus est. Crucified also for us, under Pontius Pilate, Suffered, and buried was. O Sacrum Convivium (O Sacred Feast) Olivier Messiaen was one of the 20th important composers of organ music for the Catholic service. O Sacrum Convivium is his only vocal work specifically for the church. It was composed early in 1937 and when the score was published later that year by Durand, the title page indicated that th e work had been commissioned by Abb F. Brun, a noted authority on Gregorian chant. The first at a O Sacrum

PAGE 10

10 Co nvivium is an antiphon associated with the Magnificat at the second Vespers service of the feast of Corpus Christi. The text is attributed to St. Thomas Aquinas. O sacrum convivium, in quo Christus sumitur recolitur memoria passionis ejus, mens impletu r gratia et futurae gloriae nobis pignus datur, Alleluia. O sacred banquet, wherein Christ is received the memorial of his passion is renewed the soul is filled with grace and a pledge of future glory is given to us, Alleluia Recordando a Venezuela (Remembering Venezuela) Composed by Gerardo Petit, this piece represents an important part of my childhood as well as my current status as a Venezuelan emigrant. The piece is i n a traditional waltz rhythm (3/4) of my native country and encompasses syncopation and polyrhythms. In the first part of this original choral arrangement, the traditional Venezuelan cuatro (four string guitar) is represented in the sopranos, tenors and ba sses, while the altos introduce the melody. Nostalgia, me lleno de nostalgia al sentirme ausente de mi patria querida recordando su gente, sus pueblos, sus praderas y mientras ms recuerdo ms te quiero Venezuela. Me dicen que ahora ests ms bella, que l os que te visitan se quedan encantados. Se emociona mi alma y emprendo una oracin dando gracias al cielo y a nuestro Libertador. Orgullosa me siento al decir "Venezuela" pues tienes para todos un poco de amistad... Aqu lo he comprobado, desde un pas le jano todo el que te visita quiere volver all. Nostalgia...I am filled with nostalgia When I feel away from my beloved country Remembering its people, its villages, its meadows... And the more memories I have, I love you more Venezuela. They tell me that now you are more beautiful, That everyone who visits you is enchanted. It thrills my soul and I undertake a prayer Thanking heaven and our deliverer. I feel proud to say "Venezuela" Because you have for everyone a bit of friendship... Even from this far a way country, I have the proof Everyone who visits you wants to return.

PAGE 11

11 Mui Rendera Two of the most popular traditional folk songs from Northeast Brazil are combined in this arrangement of Carlos Alberto Pinto Fonseca. While emphasizing the rhythmic clear. He enjoyed a successful career as a conductor and is well known for his arrangements of folk music. Ole, mui rendera, Ole, mui renda, Tu me ensina a faze rend, Que eu te ensino a namor. Virgulino Lampeao, Lampa, Lampa, Lampa, Lampeao. O seu nome Virgulino, O apelido Lampeao. Hey, lacemaker woman, Hey, lacemaker woman, If you teach me how to weave, Virgulino is Lampeao. He is Lampa, Lampa, Lampa, He is Lampeao. His name is Virgulino, His nickname is Lampeao. Ch ro no.3 Pica Pau (Woodpecker) Ch ro is traditionally a Brazilian popular music instrumental style. Its o rigins are in 19th century Rio de Janeiro Despite the fact that ch style often has a fast and happy rhythm, characterized by virtuosity and improvisation. Ch ro is cons idered the first urban popular music typical of Brazil. Pica Pau was composed in 1925 for male chorus and wind instruments (clarinet, alto saxophone, bassoon, 3 horns, and trombone.) The work is deeply rooted in indigenous culture. The theme and the lyrics of this ch ro, Nozani Na Orekua comes from the Paricis Indians and were recorded by E. Roquette Pinto. In this ch ro, Villa sound of the bird pecking at a branch. The male choir finishes off w ith the The Battle of Jericho Moses Hogan holds an international reputation as one of the world's leading contemporary directors and arrangers of the African American spiritual. He was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and studied at The New Orleans Center for Creative Arts and Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Hogan also studied at Juilliard School of the repertoires of college, high school, church, communi ty and professional choirs worldwide.

PAGE 12

12 Gloria (3 rd movement) John Rutter composed the Gloria as a concert work. It was commissioned by the Voices of Mel Olson and the composer directed the first performance on the occasion of his first visit to the Unite d States in May 1974. The Latin text comes from chants associated with the text. The composer himself sees this work as analogous to a symphony, with three movements allegr o vivace andante vivace e ritmico The accompaniment is for brass ensemble with timpani, percussion and organ. Rutter says this work is "exalted, devotional and jubilant by turns." Quoniam tu solus sanctus, tu solus Dominus. Tu solus Altisimus, Jesu Ch riste Cum Sancto Spiritu in Gloria Dei Patris. Amen For thou alone holy, thou alone Lord. Thou alone most high, Jesus Christ. With Holy Spirit in glory of God Father. Amen.

15 BIOGRAPH I CAL SKETCH Yulene Velsquez Iturrate received her Bachelor of Social Communications from Universidad Santa Mara, Venezuela. She studied music at the Conservatory Experimental de las Artes, under Ana Mara Raga. She has performed internationally as a member of the Schola Cantorum de Venezuela and has worked with world renowned composers such as John Adams and Osvaldo Golijov, and under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel, Helmuth Rilling, Simon Rattle, Claudio Abbado, Louis Langre, Erkki Pohjola, Krzysztof Penderecki, Bob Spano, Hakwon Yoon, Mara Guinand, and Alberto Grau. From 2005 to 2010 she performed the Grammy nominated oratorio La Pasin segn San Marcos by Osval do Golijov with the Schola Canorum de Venezuela in several countries and cities of the United States, and participated in the recording of the album produced by Deutsche Grammophon. As a member of the Schola Canorum de Venezuela she premiered the contempor ary opera A Flowering Tree by John Adams in Vienna, recording two years later under the production of Nonesuch from Fundacin Empresas Polar, as Assistant Director of the chi ldren choir from the Universidad Central de Venezuela, and as the conductor of the Escuela Nacional de Msica Juan Manuela Olivares. Ms. Velsquez received her Master of Music in Choral Conducting from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida.